My uncle recently told my mom about a book he read and found to be extremely helpful after he was diagnosed with diabetes. She decided to read and then immediately told me about it. So I checked it out at the library and so far am very impressed. The title of the book is The Schwarzbein Principle: The Program.
I've only just started reading it but I really like it so far. I agree with it completely. For the last couple years I've been trying to adopt a healthier lifestyle and in so doing have read a great number of books and internet sites regarding food and health. I became quite convinced after reading Food Smart by Cheryl Townsend that what I ate had great impact on how I feel.
Here are some of my favorite things she has to say....
The Schwarzbein Principle: Degenerative diseases of aging are not genetic but acquired. Because the systems of the human body are interconnected, and because one imbalance creates another imbalance, poor eating and lifestyle habits, not genetics, are the major cause of degenerative disease.
The key is to embrace the concept that health is more important than weight and to understand that once you are healthy, you can and will lose weight.
I could write much more but I 'll leave it at those 2 little quotes. It really is a great book and if you are at all interested in your health I highly recommend it.
3 comments:
Based on the quote alone, I would have to disagree. Certainly some age-related ailments are based on choices...limited exercise, smoking, etc. But there are some which are definitely genetic (a family tendency towards osteoarthritis, in my case), or luck-of-the-draw (nothing springs to mind, but I know there's stuff out there...it's just that my 40+ year old mind has already gone!).
That having been said, it certainly behooves us to do the eat right/exercise thing, which knocks back a lot of stuff. Oh, and pray! :-)
Well, according to Dr. Schwarzbein, even osteoarthritis is a "preventable degenerative disease of aging", as is a litany of other "diseases". According to the Mayo clinic the cause of osteoarthritis is unclear and they list a litany of possible causes including heredity.
I just wonder if we as a society have gotten so used to our doctors telling us that "it's just a part of aging" and we accept it without question. We tend to eat the same way our parents eat and therefore we may "age" prematurely, or not, just as our parents age. Maybe?
I don't know. It would be very interesting to see if we followed her plan to HEALTH if we might not be able to reverse some of the aging we've begun due to choices we've made over the last 30+ years.
She does have a section on the difference between genetic aging and metabolic aging.
There are two types of aging: genetic aging and metabolic aging. The first is a product of heredity; the second is the result of lifestyle choices. When you damage your metabolism through poor choices, you set yourself on an accelerated aging track. but as I said before, the good news is that most of the damage is reversible...
You have a predetermined maximum total life span based on the fact that, at a certain point in your life, your cells lose the ability to regenerate. Think of it this way: you only have a certain number of times your cells can turn over (regenerate); if you turn over your cells at a faster rate, you will use yourself up and die sooner. this number of cell turn-over is determined by your genes and is know as genetic aging.
You are also born with a predetermined maximum rate of rebuilding. Your genetic ability to rebuild efficiently on a daily basis determines how well you are able to heal from environmental, accidental and self-inflicted damage(poor habits. this rebuilding capacity natrually diminishes as you age. This can be seen in changes in skin, hair, bones, muscles, teeth and nails, etc....
Metabolic aging is the type of aging that occurs in relation to daily nutrition and lifestyle habits. You are in control of your metabolic aging because stress, food, toxic chemicals and exercise can either speed up or slow down this process.
Thanks for the tip. I put in a hold request through my local library. Hopefully it will be balm to my burned-out-on Weight-Watchers soul.
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